


Ariel-esque

by Evian_99



Series: Aphrodite’s Favourite Pastime [3]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: M/M, Merman Percy, Percy accidentally turns himself into a real-life Ariel, Proud dad Poseidon, Supportive boyfriend Nico
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-12
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:14:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28029120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evian_99/pseuds/Evian_99
Summary: Percy discovers a strange quirk he didn’t know children of Poseidon have, but really should’ve expected. He is putting full blame on Disney for this one.
Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Percy Jackson
Series: Aphrodite’s Favourite Pastime [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1997101
Comments: 4
Kudos: 185





	Ariel-esque

**Author's Note:**

> Standalone one-shot of Percy accidentally making a whimsical what if daydream reality

Percy would like to put on the record that he is not, in fact, hiding. Him sitting in the oversized bathtub of cabin three is him relaxing; languishing in the blessedness that is him not having to risk his life for a stupid godly whim. That he is currently missing dinner is entirely his own choice. He’s simply not hungry.

He glares at the edge of the tub when the traitorous rumbling of his belly disproves that statement.

Alright, so maybe he is hiding. So what? It is not as if avoiding dealing with your problems is anything illegal. After all the craziness the gods have put him through, he more than deserves to.

Crossing his arms, he glares at the Little Mermaid movie that has just finished its play through. ‘Please do know that I’m putting full blame on you for giving me this idea’, he mutters under his breath to Ariel.

‘Percy?’

Cursing, the son of Poseidon ducks underwater. He isn’t ready for Nico to see him in this state. In his panic, he fails to realise that hiding in a semi-shallow tub is a rather ineffective solution. Attempting to curl up and disappear only ever works if you manage to actually get out of the line of sight.

Which he can’t.

Breaking the surface, the demigod leans over the edge of the tub with his back facing the entrance. He can imagine how Nico is cautiously entering, how he nervously eyes the intimidating statue of the sea god, not at all fully comfortable at being here when his boyfriend is not.

‘Where are you? I’ve brought dinner.’

Bless his sweet soul, Percy thinks as he hears him approach the bathtub. Not sure how to handle this, he keeps his silence as he hears Nico make a sound of confusion.

The Italian’s footsteps stop as he clearly spots him. ‘I didn’t realise you had a visitor.’

He sounds rather confused and that makes him feel bad. Knowing that the boy must be searching the rest of the cabin for any sign of him, Percy knows the game is up. ‘I don’t’, he says as he turns to face the son of Hades. He bites his lip, a bad habit that he knows he should break if he doesn’t want to make them bleed every time he does it. With his shoulders raised in a defensive manner, he tries to steel himself.

The reaction is exactly how he expected. At the least the first few seconds, that is.

Nico stares at him with an open mouth. ‘You…’ he stammers as he asks for permission with his eyes to come closer. Taking a seat on the edge of the tub, he takes in the beautiful azure mermaid tail that has replaced his boyfriend’s legs.

He startles when Percy seemingly shrinks into himself. ‘What’s wrong?’ The demigod looks deeply concerned. ‘Are you in pain?’

‘I’m a freak.’ The wobble in his voice makes Nico rush to hug him, entering the water without hesitation. As his boyfriend whispers desperate phrases in Italian, a small smile unconsciously appears on Percy’s lips. He should’ve known how he is when he’s upset.

Eventually Nico switches back to English. ‘Not at all!’ he breathes as he wraps his arms around him. ‘ _Miei dei_ [my gods], you’re beautiful! Absolutely stunning!’

Feeling a little bashful, Percy cautiously looks up. In a small voice he asks: ‘Really?’ He moves his tail, though it feels strange and unnatural. His muscles haven’t quite adapted to not having to control two separate legs any longer.

‘I don’t even know how this happened,’ he admits, ‘I was watching a movie, and then I was wondering what it would’ve be like to swim in Atlantis like Ariel and then suddenly—’ His words speed up until he’s properly rambling. The fountain reacts to his embarrassment, dousing them in water and drenching his boyfriend.

Said boyfriend is looking at him for permissions and is seemingly completely unbothered by the water. Percy’s cheeks burn as he thinks that over. It isn’t the first time that he accidentally soaks someone.

‘Can I touch it?’ At his nod, Nico strokes his hand over the smooth scales. His boyfriend looks positively mesmerised. The tail starts just a few centimetres under his belly button, the scales on his skin glimmering in the light. ‘How long ago did this happen?’ he asks, still tracing the scales.

Percy shudders from the intense sensation. His blush deepens, but this time for a completely different reason. ‘Not sure.’ It isn’t a surprise how his flighty behaviour makes the other raise an unimpressed eyebrow. ‘Three hours’, he admits, casting his eyes down at where Nico’s hand still touches his tail.

The bastard keeps his silence, forcing him to admit that he also isn’t quite sure on how to turn back. He will put on the record that his boyfriend’s laughter is very much not appreciated.

Definitely not pouting, he defensively says: ‘Well, it was only fun for the first hour, you know. My tail is cramping like mad.’

Seeing his Ghost Prince taking a moment to properly analyse the tub, he can see the gears in his head turning. It is way too small for Percy to properly stretch his tail, but something about the scene is just too hilarious.

‘Yeah, yeah,’ the son of Poseidon grumbles, ‘I know what you’re thinking: only Percy can get himself into a situation like this.’ He huffs a little as he continues his in a rant: ‘Putting it over the edge isn’t an option either. It hurts when the tail starts to dry out.’

He can see how hard Nico tries to keep a straight face and is fully aware that he tries very hard to keep his voice even. ‘This calls for a rescue operation.’ Then his lip twitches.

Percy glares when he realises just what exactly Nico was thinking, he crosses his arms. ‘I’m never going to live this down, am I?’

Nico furiously shakes his head. He is visibly losing his battle to keep himself from laughing and flees the cabin before he does. The newly minted merman doesn’t shout for him to come back.

At least in the sea he will be comfortable.

A hiccough of laughter escapes him the moment he sets foot outside. Although Nico will forever hate the idea of his boyfriend being in pain and discomfort, it’s also so hilariously Percy that he can’t help himself. That said, something about seeing the other as a merman is giving him all sorts of inappropriate thoughts.

Steeling himself, he starts to march to the arena. He has a rescue party to arrange and he knows just the right people for the job.

‘Annabeth!’ he shouts a few minutes later as his eyes find the blond. Nico strides right up to her, disrupting her sparring match. Not giving her a chance to protest, he says: ‘I need your help. Can you grab Will from the infirmary and meet me ASAP at cabin three?’

Not wanting the other camping to overhear he steps a little closer. Hesitating, he adds: ‘Maybe also get Chiron. Percy got himself into a bit of mess and maybe he has experience with this.’

He is glad for the effort Annabeth takes to keep herself from asking further questions. Nico leaves the arena, circling back to the cabins. Almost crashing into the Stolls, he decides to also rope them into the rescue operation. Now he only has to find one son of Hephaestus and they should be good to go.

‘O, my’, is what Percy hears when his rescue party enters the cabin. Chiron looks thoroughly impressed and a little like he can’t believe his eyes. Will and Annabeth are gaping, while the Stolls and Leo look like Christmas came early.

Crossing his arms defensively, he says: ‘Look, it just happened. I didn’t know I would actually turn into a mermaid.’ He doesn’t like the trio’s mischievous smiles—it makes him feel like an exotic exhibit in a zoo.

‘Merman’, Chiron absently corrects. The centaur approaches the tub, studying his tail with wonder in his eyes. ‘I didn’t know that lord Poseidon’s demigod children still had the ability.’

And doesn’t that make him feel better? Percy thinks sarcastically. Good to know that he’s even more of a freak than he thought.

Seemingly reading his thoughts, Nico gets into the tub to hug him again. With a little sigh, he leans into it. ‘The tub is too small for him,’ the Italian says, his hand slotting in with his boyfriend’s, ‘I don’t suppose you know how to help him turn back?’

Feeling the other squeeze his hand for support, he feels his hopes crushed as Chiron sadly shakes his head.

‘Unfortunately not,’ the old centaur says, ‘but your father will know. Rare though this ability might have been even in the past, he should be able to help you shift.’

Having overcome his surprise, Will rushes to the tub. ‘Are you in any pain?’ His gaze is studying Percy with such scrutiny that he feels a little shy, even though he knows full well how his friend can be worse than Nico in the fussing department.

‘No, but if I can’t shift back right now, I would very much appreciate it if you guys can help me get into the sea.’ He grimaces at the thought of having to be carried all the way through camp. There’s really going to be no way he can pretend this never happened, can he?

Their uncanny ability to read him shows itself once more as Travis answers with a gleeful no. ‘We’re so going to be doing an epic prank with this, Perce!’ Connor adds.

‘Gods no’, Annabeth mutters beside them, despite looking might interested in said prank. Percy can see her mind whirr over the concept of mer, knowing she must be bursting with impatience to bombard him with questions.

Thankfully Leo saves the day. ‘We might have something in the Hephaestus cabin that we can use to lift you to the sea. I can imagine your scales are quite sensitive?’

Feeling touched by the thoughtfulness, Percy smiles. ‘Yes,’ he rubs the back of his neck, ‘you could say that, yeah.’

‘We must also keep his tail from drying out’, Nico adds, not having forgotten what his boyfriend said earlier.

Making a little salute, Leo strides out of the cabin. Percy really can’t wait for this to be over.

Although the rescue went surprisingly smooth, it will forever count as the most embarrassing day of his life. Aware that everyone in camp now knows of his predicament, he finds he doesn’t care. Spreading his cramped muscles in the ocean feels heavenly. His coordination is far from well, but he makes do.

Only after having exhausted himself trying to learn how to operate his tail does he get back onto the sandbanks. ‘Come in, Nico!’ With his very best puppy eyes, he tries to tempt the son of Hades to get into the water. ‘No-one will drown you, silly.’

Not looking very sure about that, Nico does eventually give in. Sitting safely on the sandbanks with the water reaching a little higher than his navel, he hugs Percy.

He really likes Nico’s hugs. With a contented sigh he leans into the arms, only pouting a little bit of still not having figured out how to turn back. Which is why he is relieved when Poseidon materialises in front of them. He’s unable to suppress a laugh at how his boyfriend stiffens against his back, knowing full well how protective the god is over his rare demigod children.

‘Hi, dad!’ he greets happily, combing sheepishly a hand through his hair.

Poseidon has a proud dad-smile on his face as he gazes upon his son’s tail. ‘You’re truly stunning, son,’ he says, waving his hand to urge his friends to relax, ‘it is impressive and something I probably should’ve warned you about.’

He looks guilty, but somehow also thoroughly pleased. ‘I just didn’t think you would be able to transform yourself. It’s been a millennium since I last had a son that succeeded.’

‘Yes, well,’ Percy says, blushing from the praise, ‘Not that I don’t like being a real-life Ariel, I kinda would want to learn how to turn back. It’s not very convenient on land.’

Laughing heartily, the god goes to sit on the sandbank beside his son. Even though Percy is sure the other will deny it for the rest of his life, Nico squeaks, causing Poseidon to chuckle. Gently grabbing the hand of his son, he calmly instructs: ‘Close your eyes and focus very hard on having legs again. It should happen naturally.’

Which it did, thank the gods.

‘It was that easy?’ the words escape Nico before he realises that he even said them. Percy crosses his arms in what he will admit is a pout as the others burst into laughter. Still, he can’t find it in himself to be angry. Him being a real-life Ariel is just too awesome to concern himself with such emotions.


End file.
